Biggest Las Vegas Sports Stories of the Week (Feb 22 - 28)

#5 Las Vegas Aces get new arena name

A lot has changed for the Las Vegas Aces over the last few months, and while some of that has to do with their strategic moves in free agency, it also has to do with Mark Gruden buying the team earlier in the year. In fact, the organization has already signed a multi-year deal with Michelob Ultra to give them naming rights over the arena.  That means the Mandalay Bay Casino resort arena is now the Michelob Ultra arena, a huge win sponsorship-wise for the Aces.

On behalf of the WNBA, I am pleased to welcome Las Vegas Raiders owner Mark Davis to the WNBA family at a time when the momentum for the league has never been higher, said WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert.

#4 Limited fan attendance allowed at home games

It's no secret that Las Vegas Golden Knights fans have missed watching their favorite team live, making the announcement that the organization will allow 15% capacity at upcoming home games a big deal. While that means only 2,600 fans will be able to attend games at the T Mobile arena, it's a welcomed relief for those wanting to see live sports.  There will be some safety protocols that fans have to follow like being separated into sections, tickets only being sold in certain numbers, and temperature checks on game day, but it will be worth it to get back to normalcy.

#3 Fans allowed at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway

Las Vegas Motor Speedway is set to host three NASCAR races in March, but a debate has begun about how many fans should be allowed to attend the race. Although Nevada governor, Stephen Sisolack allowed the track to hold 20% of their capacity, a new ruling by the Southern Nevada Health district is capping the event at 15% capacity. Las Vegas track owner, Chris Powell, is understandably upset about the announcement and is still fighting to get the health district to change its mind.

"As far as I m concerned this event weekend that NASCAR brings to Las Vegas is so important to our community that we should have the opportunity to have as many people as what the governor stated in his directive," Powell said. "So I was not happy with the health district and that brought on the meetings we ve had so far and we ll continue to plead our case until we get a final resolution."

#2 Market for Marcus Mariota dries up

While many thought the Raiders would help Marcus Mariota find a new home during the offseason, new reports indicate that the former Tennessee Titan might be sticking around for a while longer. In fact, according to Ian Rappaport, talks for the former Heisman Trophy winner have dried up due to his contract. Unfortunately for Mariota, he signed a 10 million dollar contract with the Raiders and could be entitled to up to another 12 million dollars if he goes somewhere else. This means that a team would have to take a 22 million dollar chance on someone who isn't a guaranteed starter.

#1 Raiders on short list to get Russell Wilson

Russell Wilson is becoming an increasingly popular topic during the NFL offseason, and a new report by Adam Schefter somehow has the Las Vegas Raiders involved. According to Schefter, Wilson's agent, Mark Rodgers, claims that the former Super Bowl-winning quarterback wants to stay in Seattle, but would only accept trades to certain trades. The only teams that Wilson will agree to go to in the event of a trade are the Dallas Cowboys, the New Orleans Saints, the Chicago Bears, and the Las Vegas Raiders.

Why Wilson would want to come to the Raiders is not known, but adding him would complicate things immensely. For example, if Wilson does come to las Vegas, it almost certainly means that Carr is on the trade block. Although one might think Mariota would be the one on the block, his status as a non-guaranteed starter makes Carr the more likely to be traded.